Going Viral
by DarkEmoAssassin12
Summary: WARNING: Spoiler Alert (Exposure plot line) for later chapters. Morris Island holds a dark secret, one that Tory Brennan is not part of. But that secret may just be the secret to finding out about the Viral's powers. Ben B.XOC CAUTION: extreme Tory-bashing and OOCness. Please review! :3
1. Chapter 1- COLE

I hated my school. I know what you're thinking, all kids hate school. But no, it wasn't the fact that i was stuck in a room and actually had to learn things, in truth i rather enjoyed that part. No, it was my classmates which caused me to dread waking up on a weekday. See, i'd grown up on a tiny island with a grand total of 20 inhabitants. My only three friends were the other kids on the island, all guys, and all absolutely mental. The four of us got into a private, hoity toity posh school on a scholarship, and to say we weren't welcome there would be the understatement of the century. I was targetted most, probably because i was the unnamed leader of our ragtag little group. Every day in the corridors i was shoved, called names, laughed at. I mean, I was 15, I never knew snotty rich kids could be so immature. Fortunately, my father always taught me to stick up for myself. So if people bitched at me, I bitched back. They hit me, i hit back. The idiots soon learned to leave us well alone. Today was a friday, and i was more than looking forward to the weekend. I was sat in Biology drawing absently on the corner of my notebook, having already preread the notes for that lesson by accident the night before. Next to me, Hiram Stolowitski was trying and failing to stay awake and actually pay attention. Of the three guys, I'd known Hi the longest. We lived with his family for the first few years of our lives, after Hi's parents took my 15 year old dad in just after i was born. So, as you can probably guess, Hi and I are pretty close. I elbowed him gently and he snorted awake, looking around blearily before blinking at me. "Shit, what day is it?" He mumbled, rubbing furiously at his eyes. I hid a snort in my blazer sleeve. "Friday, douche. What's up with you?" "Mum had us at Temple until half ten last night. Then there was an hour and a half drive back. I think that woman is actually trying to kill me." My friend groaned, lying face down on the table and grabbing fist fulls of his hair. "What's on the agenda for after school, miss Howard? Or will you let me sleep for once?" I rolled my eyes at him, absently chewing on the end of my pen. "No idea, we could go to Loggerhead or something? I want to stay out of the house as long as possible," "Whitney on the prowl again?" Hi winked at me and i groaned, shoving his shoulder. My step mother, Whitney Howard (formerly Whitney Dubois) was like my polar opposite. She was the sheer embodiment of all things girly, i was a gothic tomboy. During my younger years, I'd always been terrified to express my individuality due to fear of upsetting my step mother. Then, as i watched my father morph into someone who should've been the opposite of her type i got more confident with myself. We disagreed quite a lot, but I loved her to death. I'd always been closer to my dad though. "She's trying to drag me prom dress shopping." i groaned. "I lost count of how many times i've tried telling her that prom is next year." Hi snorted, peering over my shoulder at the song lyrics i'd scribbled down then shrugging when he couldn't guess the song. "Let's just swap families, warning though: my mum makes you do chores." "My dad snores. Like a car engine." we both burst into simultaneous hysterics, causing the people around us to shoot death glares and hand-shush us. i rolled my eyes, purposely turning away from them and pretending to focus on the board. The bell rang ten minutes later, and Hiram and I immediately bolted for the door. "Are we meeting the rest of the dork patrol at the bench?" Hi asked, struggling to keep up with my fast pace. "Yeah, and don't let Ben hear you call him that. He will kick your ass." I chided lightly, Hi shrugged and smirked at me. "You'll protect my from your rabid boyfriend though, right? Shit, it's still so weird thinking of you two as an item!" He clapped my shoulder and i rolled my eyes, clipping him round the ear. "Dude, we've been dating for over a year! Get used to it already!" Ben Blue, the third member of our group and the oldest by a year (i was second oldest, then Shelton then Hi), had been my boyfriend since last New Years, when we'd gathered on Morris for a fireworks display and he'd just turned around and kissed me. After that, we'd established that we'd both liked eachother for a stupid amount of time and decided to do something about it. Et Voila. We made our way through the crowds of people to the bench where we always gathered, and found our two missing components already sat down. "Shelton my man! We have much to discuss!" Hi shouted in a mock deep voice, plodding over to the little guy and immediately plunging into a conversation about god knows what. Ben looked up, caught my eyes and smirked, patting the spot of table next to him. I grinned widely and skipped over, sitting down next to my boyfriend and kissing him lightly on the cheek. "How was biology?" He asked quietly, ear-tucking thick, shoulder length black hair. Ben did everything quietly, he just wasn't a talkative person. But don't get him wrong, he's wicked smart and amazingly strong, and could shoot grown men down with a snide remark. that was part of the reason why i loved him. "Same old, same old. Me and Hiram discussed swapping families, what about english?" Ben shrugged, deep brown eyes fluttering closed. "I wasn't really paying attention, i was thinking about stuff..." he trailed off, and my dark green gaze slipped towards him. I sat silently, waiting for him to carry on. "I'm tired, Cole... I'm tired of everything..." I closed my eyes, glancing behind me to make sure Hi and Shelton were still preoccupied before wrapping an arm around my boyfriends shoulders. Two years ago Ben was diagnosed with depression, i was the only one who knew about it apart from his parents. It tore me apart when he got like this, he'd contemplated and attempted suicide numerous times. It was like permanently walking on a tight rope when i was around him, but there was no safety net at the bottom. If i screwed up, we'd both fall. "You're fine," i promised, kissing his hair. "Come on, i'm here, you're ok," he leaned against me and nodded, taking a deep breath before sitting up. We exchanged smiles and i squeezed his hand before the two of us turned around to join the conversation Hi and Shelton were having. About half way through lunch, as i was in the middle of a one-sided arm wrestling game against Hi, a dark shadow fell across me, and i looked up to be greeted with sneering, dark eyes. "Chance," I spoke calmly, regarding the 17 year old with mild distaste. I didn't really have anything against Chance, he just hung around with all the wrong people. His betrothed, Hannah Wythe, was one of those people. So was Jason Taylor, the blonde bastard who stood about a foot behind him right now. Said asshole threw me a sarcastic wave. I raised an eyebrow. "Cole, how good to see you again, i heard you were ill?" Chance smiled, though i noted dully that it didn't fully reach his eyes. Wrong people. "I'm good now, thanks for the concern." I answered coolly, Chance's dark gaze flickered around the rest of my friends. Settled on Ben. I felt him stiffen behind me. "Ah, mr Blue," his tone turned mocking, i tensed myself for an argument to break out. Ben's temper was explosive, and snot nosed jocks never failed to set him off. "How's the boat?" "Piss off." Ben hissed, i reached backwards and found his leg. squeezed gently. Chance's eyebrow climbed towards his hairline. "Temper, temper." Jason sneered, my eyes narrowed and i stood up on the bench, glaring directly at the blue eyed twat. "Chance, may i suggest taking your little puppy dog and fucking the hell off?" I asked, my tone polite, gaze never leaving Jason's. The little coward nearly shit himself. Chance sighed, knowing that he was apparently backed into a corner, and ruffled my shoulder length dark auburn hair as he passed. "See you around, Cole. Boys," and they both left. "Fucking ass hats!" Ben growled, punching the table. Hi and Shelton both applauded me. "Girl, you are on fire!" Hi giggled. "Jason totally just messed his pants," Shelton snickered. "I need to take pointers from you." I shrugged, smirking despite myself, and checked the time on my phone. "We better scram, the bells about to go and we have PE next," i said, shouldering my bag and allowing Ben to help me off the bench. "Ah, PE, my favourite lesson." Hi muttered sarcastically, launching himself from the bench onto the concrete. The chubby kid bristled at the incredulous look Shelton gave him. "I'm thinking of becoming an olympic sprinter, FYI. 100M, easy peasy." Ben snorted, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and drawing me to his side. "Please, you can't run a hundred yards without passing out." He quipped, Hi scowled but stayed quiet, knowing that arguing with Ben would likely end up with him face down on the asphalt, not that he had anything to argue against anyway. It was the truth. We walked down the hallways joking and pushing each other, then parted ways to go to our seperate changing rooms. I paused outside the door, leaning against the wall and taking a deep breath. Only two more hours to go. 


	2. Chapter 2- COLE

"I'm home!" I called into the seemingly quiet house, dumping my bag by the door. "Anyone in?" "Cole!" My step-mother bustled into the hallway, blonde curls bouncing around her face as she bent and scooped up my bag to hang it up on the peg. "Where have you been, young lady, you skipped dinner again!" she scolded lightly, baby blues boring into mine. I shrugged, brushing past her into the living room. "I was out with the guys, we ate at Shelton's house, you can ask Lorelei if you want," "Darling, you need to stop this staying out late! You are fifteen years old, you aren't a child any more you need to stop-" "Whitney, leave the kid alone," a new voice cut in, we both looked up to see my father stood in the doorway. Only 30 years old, Kit Howard was tall and willowy, with unruly red hair and eyes the colour of grass. He leaned on the doorframe, nodding a head in my direction and smirked. "Good day?" "Meh, same old," i answered, grinning like the cheshire cat. I didn't know what it was, but me and my dad were always at ease with eachother. He'd gotten with Whitney Dubois when i was four years old, they got married three years later. She was the only mother figure i'd had and i loved her to bits, she was just a little over bearing sometimes... Mum sighed, straightening her cherry red pleated skirt and smoothing her curls. I threw myself onto the couch, curling up against the arm of the chair and resting my chin on my knees. "Anything good on tonight?" the couch sank as Kit crashed down next to me, grabbing the remote and flicking to some shitty horror film. Mum grumbled something about anti social families before sitting down, balling up against dad's side and settling down to the film. We watched it in relative silence, making random quips about stupid parts of the film and having to sit through Whitney screaming at everything. When it finished i sat up from my seat nestled against dad's side, stretching and looking at the clock. "Hey, i'm just gonna go for a quick walk, ok?" i said, my parents exchanged glances before nodding, i grinned and grabbed my My Chem jacket. "Be back in an hour," Kit said, i nodded and kissed both their cheeks, saluting before slipping out the door. i tugged my jacket tighter around my body, starting out towards the sand dunes. I looked around me, taking in the cool sea breeze, and admitted to myself that i loved living on this island. The freedom, the closeness to nature, even the isolation, i loved it all. And anyway, because there was only twenty of us living here we were all really close, barely anyone actually locked their doors and people just walked in and out of each others houses. Except Hi's mum, Ruth, but she was paranoid about everything. I reached the dunes and did a loop round, strolling upwards where a covered path led to our bunker. Then i doubled back, heading slowly back home. Then i heard it. A rustling in the long grass, maybe 50 yards away. I turned, squinting in the darkness, trying to see if it was an animal. Then i heard it again, this time closer and right behind me. I tried to turn, but hands grabbed my arms in an iron grip. Heart pounding, i opened my mouth to scream, only to be gagged with a cloth that tasted like piss. The person began dragging me, and i freaked the fuck out in terror, kicking everything in sight. i landed a few strong kicks on the bastard, causing him to hiss in pain. and i felt his grip loosen. Taking my chance, i lunged forwards with all my weight, catching him by surprise and causing me to topple forwards into the sand. Wasting no time, i scrambled to my feet and sprinted back towards my house. My heart was in my mouth, i could hear my attacker pounding behind me. Then, as the complex came into view, something hard hit my shin, sent me careering to the now rocky ground. Searing pain exploded across my forehead, then everything went black. 


	3. Chapter 3- BEN

I awoke to an incessant buzz, coming from my phone vibrating against the table. My eyes opened blearily and i glanced at the screen of my phone, i had like twenty texts from Hi and Shelton. Groaning an unintelligible curse, i rolled over and went back to sleep. Or at least tried to. Less than three minutes later there was a loud banging on my bedroom door, and my dad's frantic voice reached my ears. "Ben! You have to get up, now!" His tone got me moving, my dad never got worked up about anything. I rolled out of bed and dragged my feet to the door, ear-tucking the mess that was my hair. I unlocked the door and opened it to Find Tom stood in his pyjamas, work boots already laced up, he looked beyond worried. "Come on, son, we have to go to the Howard's," he said, voice grave. I raised an eyebrow. "Why?" I asked, feigning nonchalance, but my gut twisted in fear, something had to be really wrong for him to be like this. My mind flickered to the barrage of texts from my two friends, was that about the same thing? Tom sighed, deep sadness lingering in his eyes. He would not meet my gaze, instead turning away, and i almost didn't catch the three words he said next. Those three words that practically ended my existence right there. "Cole's been taken." I'd never run so fast in my life. I didn't even bother with shoes, just sprinted out of the house in my bare feet. I powered down the lawn towards the end house, where my girlfriend lived, and found the whole neighbourhood gathered outside. Two police cars had also pulled up, along with a retrieval van. I started pushing through people, aiming for the front. I needed to talk to someone. When i broke through to the middle of the circle i found Hi and Shelton both clinging to my arms, temporarily halting my movements. "Where is she?!" I practically shrieked, struggling against them. Hi moved to wrapping his arms around my shoulders in a restraining manner, Shelton started rubbing my arm. "Dude, you need to calm down," he said, though he himself looked damn near passing out. I shook my head, feeling the white-hot tears well up. She couldn't be gone, not Cole. Not my Cole... I looked up and found Kit talking to a police officer, looking downright miserable, Whitney curled in his arms sobbing hysterically. I saw him shake his head and mutter something, the officer nodded, wrote something down on a jotter, then turned to the crowd. "Everyone clear out! Now!" Muttering broke out between the whole island, then people began to disperse. The officer spotted us and gestured for us to scram, i scowled and shook my head. I knew that guy, Officer Carmine Corcoran. He'd always hated us island kids. Bastard. "You three, go! This isn't a public show!" "You think we're here for the show?!" I growled, trying to yank from the guys' grip. No go, Hi had gained a death grip on my chest. "She's our friend! We want to know what happened to her!" Corcoran opened his mouth to argue, but a quiet voice cut him off. "It's alright, the kids can stay," we looked up at Kit, and i nodded gratefully at him. There was a rustling behind us, and we turned to see three police officers emerge from over a dune, an Alsatian tied to a chain in the grip of the front one. "Boss! We've got blood over here! Only a few hours old," Beside me, Hi turned a pale green colour, and Shelton paled considerably. My heart froze, I heard Whitney break out in a fresh round of hysterics behind us. "Can you track the scent?" Corcoran asked, the officer shook his head. "It leads down to the dock, then disappears completely, she ain't on this island any more, sir." Corcoran sighed, tucking his jotter back into his pocket and rubbing at his eyes. Then he turned to Kit. "We'll send search parties out to all the surrounding islands, see if we can find your daughter, we'll be in touch," the other officers began packing away, and the five of us just watched in silence. I was numb. "Thank you," Kit mumbled, running a hand over his face. He rubbed his wife's shoulder, her face still buried in his flannel shirt, and kissed her hair. "Come on, lets get you inside," they started walking back up the stairs, then Kit paused and looked at us. Tried for a smile. "You kids want to come in for some cocoa?" Shelton nodded for all of us, and tugged me forwards. I took one step, then my stomach lurched and i fell forwards onto the grass, dry heaving like i had a really bad hangover. Hi dropped to his knees behind me and rubbed my back, Shelton dancing away a few steps due to his random fear of people being sick. I don't know when my heaving turned into crying, but suddenly i couldn't see, the world was just one big blur. Pressure built up in my chest, constricting my heart, i couldn't breathe. I vaguely heard footsteps, then arms wrapped around my shoulders. "It's ok, buddy, let it all out," Kit soothed, i squeezed my eyes closed as another sob racked my body. Kit rubbed the top of my arm, encouraging me, and i opened my mouth to speak when the pressure released. Someone screamed. Seconds later, i realised it was me. 


	4. Chapter 4- COLE

Darkness. That was it. I was completely enveloped in an endless void of black. I couldn't see, the darkness was closing in. I became acutely aware of the gag secured over my mouth, making it hard to even swallow. Somewhere to my right, i heard a growl. Followed by a high pitched yip. A dog? My head lolled, but i was still blind. I was strapped to something hard, a table? Hooked up to wires, the beep of a heart monitor that i'd managed to drown out resurfaced in my mind. Pain blasted behind my eyelids, a reminder of the cruel reunion i'd made with the rocks the last time i was conscious. I hissed, closing my eyes and willing the pain to go away. Click. Click. Bang. The sound if a deadbolt turning caught my attention, and my gaze flickered towards the sound. A thin shaft of light appeared in the darkness, then was blocked as a figure stepped inside the chamber. Footsteps echoed, something on the right crunched. I heard the scraping of shoes of cobbles, then someone scribbling on a piece of paper. The person's breathing was slow but laboured, i focused back on the shaft of light. How far away was it? I couldn't tell. There was nothing that i could see outside of the door either, i had no idea where i was. The person shuffled, stood up. Footsteps receded, the shaft of light disappeared. I was floating in darkness once more. 


	5. Chapter 5- HI

The Bunker was too quiet. Even with Shelton sat opposite me, it was too damn quiet. I threw the ball back and my bespectacled friend caught it with ease, bouncing it off the wall behind my head. We'd been doing this for over an hour. "Oh man, i can't believe this..." Shelton breathed at last, tugging super speed on his earlobe. We both simultaneously glanced to the corner of the room, where remnants of Ben's blood were still lodged into the grains. I shuddered, remembering that if i hadn't decided to follow Ben when he went out that night he would've succeeded in taking his own life. Hell knows he cut deep enough, i'd never seen so much blood. Now Ben was in hospital, and would probably be referred to at least three shrinks, and Cole was still AWOL. I'd overheard my parents saying that the police thought she was already dead. I tried not to think like that. "I mean, depression? Why didn't he tell us he had depression?" I shrugged half heartedly, retrieving the ball from under the table and throwing it back. "It's a complex thing, dude, my uncle had it. He probably didn't want us to worry about him," "But he nearly killed himself, Hi. And Cole isn't here to stop him doing that any more." "Then we have to take her place. They're our friends, she would've wanted us to help him!" I threw the ball back and Shelton fumbled for it, it bounced off his shoulder and rolled towards the entrance. We sat in silence for a few minutes, then his head dropped. "... Do you really think she's dead?" He asked, catching me off guard. A lump caught in my throat. My gaze unwillingly drifted to the bench in the corner of the room where our two other friends used to sit, where they'd share blushing kisses whenever they thought we weren't looking. I closed my eyes. "I don't know. I mean, Cole is the toughest bitch i know, she'll fight tooth and nail to the end. But there's been no ransom video, no note, nothing. If someone kidnapped her for money something like that would've turned up by now. Plus you heard what the police said, she had a severe head wound by falling face first onto a rock, if that wasn't treated immediately it would become fatal." I stood up, crossing the room and putting a hand on my friends shoulder. He looked up at me, brown eyes swimming with tears behind his glasses. "One thing i do know, is that she wouldn't have wanted us to give upon living. I don't want to give up on her, you know i don't, but she's gone and there's nothing we can do about that. So what we have to do now is look after Ben, because i am not going to lose him too." Shelton nodded, standing up and putting a fist out. "For Cole and Ben?" He asked, voice shaking. I nodded and touched my own fist to his. "For Cole and Ben." 


	6. Chapter 6- KIT

-ONE MONTH LATER- The living room was empty. I tried not to think about it, but my mind was always drawn to the two vacant spot at the dining room table. A week after Cole's disappearance, Whitney's mother had had an accident, and became paralysed from the neck down. My wife had asked to move back in with her to help around the house, despite carers going there four times a day, and i didn't argue. Cole may not have biologically been her daughter, but Whitney was barren, and viewed her in the way a mother would. Cole's disappearance messed with her mind, she was unstable, and staying here would not help her. I myself had thought about moving, but jobs in Marine Biology were scarce, and anyway i didn't want to leave in case they ever found my daughter. I scrubbed hands through my hair, leaning forwards and grabbing the hand written letter i'd received from the Chief of Police. They'd called off the search, pronounced her dead. I couldn't wrap my head around it. On the arm of the chair, my phone began to ring, and i picked it up wearily. "Hello?" "Hey, bud, how you holding up?" Tom Blue's voice crackled across the line, i sighed and leaned back on the chair. "Not great, but i'm surviving... How's Ben? He's coming home today, right?" It had taken longer than anticipated for the gashes on Ben's arms to heal, and even after they did he became unresponsive, he just stared at the wall all day. He'd only started responding two days ago. "Yeah he's upstairs, i had to sweep his room to see if there was any sharp object he could hurt himself with, he had a worryingly large stash of razors in his drawer," Tom sounded exhausted, i closed my eyes and rubbed a hand over my face. "Poor kid, give him a hug from me alright? Is he talking yet?" "He hasn't spoken to me, or anyone, for three weeks, i just hope to shit that he hasn't lost the will to live like he's lost the will to speak," i felt like crying for my best friend and his son. Cole was physically gone, yes, but by the sounds of things she'd taken Ben with her. He was like an empty shell now. I opened my mouth to speak, but was cut off by a knock on my door. I frowned. "I'm gonna have to call you back, Tom, someone's at the door," "Really? Yeah i'll see you later dude, come over after and we'll have a few beers, ok?" "I'd like that," i almost cracked a smile, there was another knock. "See you later, Tom," "Bubye," i hung up and pocketed my phone, walking into the hallway and opening the door. Two people were stood on the porch, a man and a woman, both in navy suits. The woman smiled warmly. "Are you Christopher Howard?" She asked, i nodded dazedly. "I am," "I'm Lucy Thorpe and this is James Anderson, we're from Social Services, may we come in?" I frowned but stepped aside, leading the two social workers into the living room. "Not to be rude, but why are social workers in my house?" I asked, leaning on the back of the couch. I honestly had no idea why they'd turned up, half feared they'd try and accuse me of having something to do with Cole's disappearance. "Are you familiar with a woman named Colleen Brennan?" Lucy asked, grey eyes trained on me. I chewed my lip, shrugged. "Can't say i am, sorry," the social workers exchanged glances, then James produced a picture. "This is her," he showed me the picture, and i studied the slender, ginger lady with a frown. Then my eyes widened in recognition. "Anna..." "What did you say?" My gaze snapped back up to James, who'd spoken, and i shook my head. "Yeah i know her, but i knew her as Anna Stapleton," another exchanged glance, i felt like i was being cornered. "I haven't seen her for years, we had a fling when we were younger but i haven't seen her since then," "When was the last time you spoke with Miss- Stapleton...?" Lucy asked gently, i shrugged. "13, 14 years ago? Something like that, what does she have to do with anything?" "Miss Brennan was killed in a car accident a week ago, leaving her daughter, Victoria behind," "That's awful, but i don't see how i'm involved...?" "Victoria is 13 years old, Mr Howard, on her birth certificate you are listed as her father," i blinked, my face void of everything, my mind blanking on me. I had another daughter? "She has no other family aside from you, as her father it is your legal obligation to take her in," Lucy stepped forwards, putting a hand on my shoulder. "I know this must be a shock for you, Mr Howard, especially after the recent loss of your other daughter," i shook my head, fixing a very false smile on my face. "Of course i'll take her in, when does she need a room ready by?" He must've noticed how hard i was trying to not have a breakdown, because James breezed over the specifics. "Next week at the latest, we'll be in touch, sir." It took everything in me not to break at that, that was what the police said. Then they told me my baby was dead. I showed them to the door on shaky legs, then collapsed against it as it closed. I drew in a trembling breath, eyes squeezed closed, trying to fight the tears. With unstable hands, i called the one person that i really needed to talk to. 


	7. Chapter 7- TEMPE

"Boyd! Come on, you fat sack of crap, come get your chow," there was a beat, then my ex husbands mutt came lumbering into the kitchen. I watched him go in disdain, wondering how often Pete gave in to the pooch's pleas for more food. When Boyd was happily distracted i threw a few biscuits out for Birdie, then turning to the washing up. "I'm home!" A familiar voice called as the front door slammed shut, i heard rustling, then Detective Andrew Ryan loped into the kitchen. Yes, i'd finally given in to his offer of moving in together. After his second try with Lutetia crashed and burned we were on a less rocky road in our relationship. "Hey, watcha doin' sweet cheeks?" Arms wrapped around me, and i felt my eyes roll. "Washing up, i was thinking of ordering curry tonight-" RING RING. "Who's phoning at this hour?" Ryan groaned, plucking the phone from it's holder and pressing it to his ear. "Hello?" He was silent for a moment, then turned to me and held the phone out. "It's your nephew, he sounds pretty upset," Frowning, i took the phone from my lover. "Kit?" "Aunt Tempe," my nephew sobbed down the phone, the utterly broken tone of his voice startling me. "What's wrong, sweetie?" "I can't take it, auntie... I want her back..." Oh, Kit. I closed my eyes, worrying my lip as i thought about what to say. When he was fifteen Kit ran away from home, then a year later he got in touch with me. He begged that i didn't tell his parents where he was, that they didn't care about him and he wanted nothing to do with them. I begrudgingly agreed, knowing that my sister had always treated Kit like a hindrance instead of a son, and never really paid attention to him. He introduced me to his daughter, the reason he ran away, and i fell in love with her immediately. We met up regularly and he would tell me about his life, i became like a stand in mother for him. I'd heard of Cole's disappearance, knew how much it tore my nephew apart. That girl was his everything. "Kit, calm down... What's happened?" He'd seemed better when i spoke to him two nights ago, like he was at least pulling through. Now, apparently, he was slipping back down. "You re-remember that girl i dated, Anna? Then we br-oke up?" He started after a while, i exchanged phone hands and batted Ryan away as he tried to sneak some food. "I do," "Well... Some social wor-kers *hic* came by today, and they told me that she'd died..." "Oh, honey that's terrible, is that why you're so upset?" It seemed unlikely, Kit had had many girlfriends, and even some boyfriends, while he was growing up. He did it to try and get Harry's attention, but it never worked. I didn't see why he'd be so upset about the death of someone he hadn't spoken to for years. "N-no, they said that i have a da-daughter with her, and i have to ta-take her in cause she doesn't have anyone else..." And there it was. "Is she definitely yours?" I offered helplessly, not knowing how to tackle this new information. "Apparently... I just, i feel like i'm replacing Cole... Like, she's disappeared so i just get another daughter inste-ad, and what if she is still alive? What if they find her, and she comes home to find that her room is being used by someone else? And i don't even know what Whit will say, i don't know what to do anymore, Tempe... I just want my little girl back..." "Kit, listen to me. You are not replacing Cole, you could never replace her. And i know she would never think of it like that either. But this girl is your daughter too, she needs her dad." The line fell silent, and if it weren't for the muffled sobs i could still hear i would've thought my nephew hung up. Then, "Thank you for talking sense into me, Aunt Tempe, i'm not thinking straight." "Sweetie you have every excuse not to be thinking straight, just take your mind of everything for a while, ok? Go out somewhere," "Yeah i was going to go to Tom's, have a few beers, we're both pretty messed up right now," "Beer, just what you need, go have fun," "Thank you, auntie, it was good talking to you," i smiled gently. "You too, my love. I'll come round within the next few days, alright?" "I'd like that, see you soon," "Bye," Click. I pulled the phone away from my ear and put it on the side, turned and gratefully stepping into Ryan's open arms. "He's hurting, Ryan..." I mumbled, closing my eyes and focusing on my lovers heartbeat. "He's hurting, and there's nothing i can do..." 


	8. Chapter 8- SHELTON

Oh man, oh man, this was so bad. I tugged incessantly on my earlobe, pacing the bunker, waiting. A few minutes, then there was a thud as my portly companion dropped into the main room. "Dude, what crawled up you ass and died?" Hi asked, flopping into his chair. I paused and frowned at him. "This isn't time for bullshit, Hiram. Where's Ben?" "He's on his way, seriously though what's up?" I shook my head, resuming my pacing, and refused to talk about anything. Several more minutes passed, then Ben ducked into the bunker. He looked a lot better than the last time i'd seen him, the dark circles under his eyes were fading and he looked like he'd finally brushed his hair. But his eyes still looked dead, and he'd rolled his sleeves up due to the hot weather, revealing the bandages still adorning his whole forearms. I smiled at him, and he nodded weakly before jumping up onto the window sill. "Now can you tell us what's got you so jittery?" Hi said, a tick forming above his left eye. I took a deep breath, sitting down in the other chair and sighing. A hand drifted back up to my earlobe. "Kit was round at our house last night, and i heard him talking to me parents while i was washing up... Apparently he just found out that he's got another daughter with some woman he was with when they were younger," two sets of eyes snapped up to meet mine, and i shrunk away from my friends intense gazes. "And, the mum got killed in a car accident, so now she has to come live here..." I finished with a squeak as Hi slammed his hand on the table, i didn't dare even look at Ben. "It messed him up pretty bad," i added quickly, trying to lead blame away from Kit. "He started crying, it was horrible to see to be honest." "You're kidding me..." Hi groaned, head butting the decaying wood repeatedly. "How old is she?" His question stumped me and i stared, confused as to why the information was relevant. Then i thought back to the conversation i heard the night before. "13, i think..." "So she's around our age, too." Another groan. "We'll have to make friends with her then, i mean if she was like five then we'd be able to stay away from her. But it'll be suspicious if we're avoiding her like the plague when we're similar ages." "That's if she wants to be friends with us, we aren't exactly normal." I offered helplessly, Hi shrugged. "Exactly, what do we do then?" "I say we be welcoming, not like she has much of an alternative for buddies all the way out here. If she doesn't want to hang around with us, that's her call." "No one mention Cole." Ben piped up, my gaze flickered over to him to see him hunched over, black hair shielding his eyes from view. I opened my mouth to argue, but Hi cut me off. "I agree, what she doesn't know won't hurt her, and i'm pretty sure we can all agree that that's an extremely sore topic at the moment, having to explain everything to the newbie would involve reliving everything, and i know damn well that i'm not willing to do that. So we don't talk about or bring Cole up, if Kit tells her about her then fine, but we mention nothing." I nodded in agreement, unused to Hiram being so... Business like. It was weird, but i figured that he was assuming Cole's position as leader of our ragtag group. Under usual circumstances, the role would have naturally fallen to Ben, but he was officially mentally unstable, and so unable to make decisions. Poor bastard. "So it's settled then?" I asked, Hi nodded, then paused. "When does she get here?" "Tomorrow," another nod, Stolowitski then shoved from his seat and joined Ben on the window sill, muttered in his ear. Ben shrugged. "Then we should go out somewhere tonight, the three of us, what's on at the cinema?" I shrugged, grabbing my phone and checking the cineworld website. "The new muppets movie has just come out, we could go see that?" I offered, Ben snorted. "Why not? Maybe we'll spot Hi," he muttered, Hi huffed indignantly. "Dude i'm cooler than you'll ever be, like a block of ice in an alaskan freezer." I raised an eyebrow, snorting laughter at the horrendous comparison. Inside i was jumping with glee at the fact that Ben made a joke, a sign that he was finally returning to normal. Maybe things were finally looking up. 


	9. Chapter 9- TORY

"It's just a little further ahead," the social worker, i think her name was Lucy something, said kindly, i nodded absently and continued to watch out of the window. Trees flew past for a seemingly endless amount of time, i wondered just how far away from civilisation my new home was. 'there won't be any kids all the way out here, either. Score one for making friends.' I stifled a sigh, blinking when the dark canopy abruptly broke out into a huge clearing, an island. Ten town houses occupied half of the grass between our location and the sea, five on each side, making a sort of pathway to the beach behind it. I stared at it in awe, too preoccupied by the view to notice the people burst from the house on the right end. The guy at the front -who looked to be being chased by the one behind- tripped and danced precariously across the grass for a few steps, then toppled forwards straight onto his face. He quickly righted himself, something quite impressive considering he wasn't the most agile looking person i'd ever seen, and scrambled away from his more muscular attacker, darting down the complex and disappearing over a dune. The follower bounded after him, and he too vanished from sight. "Guys stop!" My gaze shot back towards the house, where a short, skinny black kid was trying to chase after who i assumed to be his friends. "Ben for the love of god, you're gonna kill him!" His little short-clad legs began pounding the grass as he chased after the other two, he too escaped my field of vision. Wait... Kids?! There were other kids living on the island?! Granted, they were all guys. And all seemed to drop right off the radar of weird, but at least i wasn't alone! "Here we are?" The car glided to a stop outside the end house on the left, and both social workers climbed out. I fumbled with my seatbelt, fell out of the car, and tripped on my shoes on the way up the stairs. Great, Tory. Way to make a good impression. The male social worker knocked on the door, and a million thing flew through my head. What would my dad look like? How would he act? Lucy said something about him being a Marine Biologist, so i imagined a nerdy guy who was quite short and wore glasses. Possibly curly hair? A lock clicked and i gulped, looking up as the door swung open to reveal... Ok. Not what i was expecting. My father's vibrant green eyes locked with mine and he smiled rather awkwardly, scrubbing a hand through his shaggy red hair. "You must be Victoria," he said, i shrugged and my face burned. "Tory is fine," i said curtly, he blinked and nodded. "Oh! Um, yeah of course! Tory, i'm Kit, um... I wish we could've met under more cheerful circumstances..." A hand reached or the back of his head, i could tell he was uncomfortable. I tried for a smile. "Me too," "Well, we'll leave you two to it," Lucy said, shaking Kit's hand. Kit nodded and waved them off before grabbing my suitcases and dragging them inside. I stepped in and looked around, taking in the decor. Simple furniture, IKEA style. Dark blue walls. Kit was stood in the middle of the living room, fiddling with his hands, his eyes met mine momentarily then darted away. "Soo..." I started, my voice apparently jolting him from whatever trance he'd stooped into. "So! Um, well, this is the living room, obviously..." He made a weak hand gesture. "Kitchen and dining table are through there, your room's the one opposite the stairs, mine's the one next to that and you've got an onsuite bathroom... Um, the third floor is my media lab, so don't go up there unless i'm already up there, and there's a trap door in the landing that leads up to the roof... I think that's everything?" I nodded and smiled again, trying desperately not to feel awkward. 'Well this is my life now...' I inwardly sighed. Kit opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the front door slamming open. "Kit! Save me!" A voice shouted, the fat kid from before ran in panting like a marathon runner. "I'm going... To die..." He breathed, bracing over his knees, face red. My father rolled his eyes. "Save you from what, pray tell?" He asked, a smile tugging at his lips. The fat kid carried on heaving. "Ben... wants my head..." "What did you do now?" I watched the exchange between them in silent awe, i'd never seen an adult and a minor interact in this casual a way before, everyone was so formal back home. "I inadvertently called him an inferior race..." He managed at last, finally catching his breath and straightening up. "Geez, i didn't mean to! Now he's actually trying to kill me!" "How did you manage that?" Kit snorted, leaning back against the couch. "Anyway, you know what's Ben's like," "Yeah, he's a schizophrenic psycho," then he seemingly noticed me, and a smile broke out on his reddened face. "You must be the newbie!" "Yeah i'm Tory," the kid nodded and stuck out his hand, i shook it hesitantly then discreetly wiped my hand on my shorts. I sweat enough, thank you. "I'm Hiram Stolowitski, feel free to call me Hi, you want a tour of the island with my companions?" His eyes flickered to Kit. "If that's alright with you, young sir?" Kit shrugged, smiling at me. "Why not? A chance to mingle with the locals," Hi smirked and saluted, gesturing for me to follow him before skipping out. "You're gonna love how we spend the holidays here," he said, leading me down the steps and back up the complex towards a huge forest. As we neared it, i saw two figures standing on the treeline. "A month left of the holidays, you'll be a proper Morris Islander by the time you have to brave school, hey guys! Check the newbie!" As we drew nearer, the taller of the two- who i realised was the chaser before- scowled in Hi's direction, said lump back-pedalled with his hands in the air. "Easy, slugger, let's call it a truce ok?" The offender's scowl didn't lessen, but he backed up a little due to the request of the black kid. Hi gestured to one then the other. "This is Ben and Shelton, guys this be Tory," Shelton adjusted his glasses and waved at me, i waved back and smiled before looking at Ben. Oh my God. His dark eyes lingered on me for a moment, marginally wider than usual, then he nodded curtly, looking away. Long black hair fell into his copper-coloured face, and i think i may have fallen in love right there. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad here after all. 


	10. Chapter 10- CHANCE

"Chance! Up, now!" A gruff voice barked up the stairs, my eyes fluttered open and i pushed myself into a sitting position, rubbing at my eyes. "CHANCE!" "I'm awake!" I growled back, sliding from the warm confines of my bed and going about getting ready. I left the bathroom and paused in the centre of the room, donning only boxers, trying to figure out what day it was. Ah, September 8th. First day of school. "Will you hurry the fuck up, boy?!" Came the voice again, i couldn't help the eye roll, but wouldn't risk the consequences of keeping my father waiting. I quickly changed into the customary Bolton uniform and brushed and styled my hair, padding downstairs and into the dining room of our mansion. Ah, the joys of being rich. My father was seated at the table, reading the morning paper as usual. I stood by my chair, waiting for him to grant permission for me to sit down. Pathetic, i know, but to that man i was the scum of the earth. If i put even a toe out of his definition of what was acceptable, there were very painful consequences. "Sit." He ordered, i nodded and quickly took my seat. "You're picking Hannah up this morning, don't forget again." "Ah, yes... Sorry, father." I bowed my head, should've guessed he wouldn't forget about the one time i'd lost track of time and left my fiancee standing outside an event for over two hours. Hollis rolled his eyes, seemed to ponder something. "Any news on that Howard girl?" "Cole? Not as far as i've heard-" SLAM. I looked up quickly and saw that my father was seething, uh oh. What did i do now? "Referring to those commoners on a first name basis? Despicable. You shouldn't even acknowledge those rats, you hear me?" "Yes, father..." No, father. You're an asshole, father. Burn in hell, father. "Good, now get out of my sight. You don't want to be late." I nodded and stood up, almost running from the room. I stopped by the kitchen and grabbed a cereal bar, piling all my equipment into my empty messenger bag and yanking on my shoes before fleeing from the hell hole. One day, i was going to murder my father. ~ I finally managed to shake Hannah off outside MFL, where she had a board meeting with her fellow 'girlfriends', and was honestly looking forward to a lunch without her. My father was the one who arranged the marriage, i -of course- had no say in it, and to be honest i didn't know if i loved her. She was sweet, yes, but i didn't think i loved her. As i was walking down the always empty Glass Corridor, i spotted a familiar face leaning against his locker on his phone. He was alone. "Hey, Blue!" He looked up at my voice, brown eyes widened when he recognised me. Then he scowled. "Fuck off, Claybourne." He hissed, moving to walk away. I grabbed his arm before he could leave, and he half turned to raise an eyebrow at me. "What do you want? It's hard to honour the 'don't talk to me' policy when you start shit like this." "I never said you shouldn't talk to me, stop being an asshole." He bristled at my words, but i ploughed on anyway. "I was just wondering if there was any news on Cole?" "Why would you care?!" Ben growled, yanking his arm from my grip. "What, going to run along and tell all your popular friends about how laughable it is, 'the island girl finally got what was coming to her'?!" He spun round, punched a locker. "That is all i've heard since we came back! People snickering about her, treating her like she *deserved* to be kidnapped! How sick are you people?!" I put my hands up to my chest, fingers splayed outwards in a surrender. "Ben, calm. I don't think she deserved it. And i wasn't asking for anyone else, either, i was asking because i genuinely worry for her well being. Despite how i may come across, i honestly do care." Ben seemed to deflate, falling heavily against the locker he'd just pounded. I watched his eyes glaze over, his mouth morph into a miserable line, and my gut knotted. That wasn't good. "They've called off the search," he muttered, scrubbing a hand over his face. "They don't think she's still alive, they've given up on her." Then he straightened up and walked back in the opposite direction, brushing past me with a heavy slump to his form. I let him go, wrapped in my own little circle of moping. I'd liked Cole, she was self-respecting in the way that most of the sluts in this school weren't. I'd even go so far as to call her my friend, albeit a secret one, if only to prevent a repeat of what happened the last time i was friends with a 'commoner'. And now she was missing, and as far as the police were concerned dead too. Brilliant. I continued walking down the deserted corridor, breaking into the main part of school and joining the flow of people heading towards the canteen. Then, joy to the fucking world, i heard him. Jason was stood at a locker, his back to me, laughing way too hard at a joke that probably wasn't even that funny. 'You stupid bastard, what are you doing?' I walked over to him, fixing a smile on my face and tapping his shoulder. He visibly jumped, and i rolled my eyes. "Oh, Chance! I was wondering when you'd turn up," he grinned at me and i smirked back, inwardly wanting to throw up. Even after all these years, i still hated the dick. "Who's this?" I looked at who he'd been talking to, surprised when i didn't recognise her. She looked up at me, pale green eyes widening, and instantly began fiddling with her long ginger hair. She looked exceptionally young for Jason to be flirting with her. "This is Tory Brennan, she's new here and moved up a year, you're 14 right?" The girl nodded, red dusting her nose. "Yeah, i just turned 14..." She would not meet my eyes, a normal reaction. Sigh. "Well, Tory, welcome to Bolton. I'm sure you'll enjoy it here," i smiled brightly at her, flashing teeth, and her whole face turned red. "Tory!" We looked up to see the two remaining Island kids run up, Shelton grabbed Tory's arm. His gaze flickered to mine, darted away nervously. "Come on, we're meeting Ben in the canteen," "Don't want to keep him waiting!" Hiram cried, throwing us a wave before dragging the little redhead away. I saw Jason deflate next to me. "Damn, she's one of *those* lot," he sighed, i rolled my eyes and gave his shoulder a 'friendly' punch, albeit with more force than probably necessary. "Get over yourself, you idiot. She's way too young for you anyway." And i stalked off down the hall, trying to get away from the douche i had the misfortune of calling my best friend. 


	11. Chapter 11- COLE

-TWO MONTHS LATER- Ice blue eyes bore into the side of my head. I tried to ignore them, but the feeling niggled at the back of my mind. My head lolled, and i met the gaze of the tiny wolf dog cub in the cage across the room. The lights had been turned on some time ago, and i still had yet to figure out why i was here. I hadn't been hurt, hell i hadn't really seen anyone. One person came in every day to top up my drip and feed the mutt, but he wore a full face mask. "Don't look at me like that, dog face." I muttered hoarsely, raising an eyebrow at the puppy's sad eyes. "I'm just as trapped as you are." The door swung open, and the masked man stepped into the room. "Oh, you're back again." I growled, the figure came over to me and held up a syringe filled with opaque liquid. He flicked the vial experimentally. "What's that? What the fuck are you doing?" My heart rate sped up as he grabbed my arm, turning it so my vein was on show and plunging the needle into my arm. He depressed the plunger and withdrew it, placing the used syringe back on the table. Then he picked up another, smaller syringe containing the same liquid and walled over to the now whining wolf dog pup. He injected into the dogs scruff and forced him to sit down, then standing up again. "What do you want with me?! What have you just injected?! Oi, i'm talking to you you bastard!" The person paused in the doorway, turned towards me. I carried on talking, desperate for answers now the dick was actually listening. "Why me? Why do you want me?" The person shook his head, lifting a face up to his mask and pulling it back. I felt my blood run cold. "You..." Marcus Karsten smiled coldly at me. 


	12. Chapter 12- HI

I stood in the entrance to the bunker, jaw slack. Shelton tumbled in behind me, crashing straight into my back. "Dude, what the hell?!" He grumbled, brushing dust off his ass where he hit the floor. I hand shushed him, not looking away from the singled black balloon floating in the corner of the room. "Look..." Shelton followed my gaze, then gasped. Cold settled in my blood. "Shelton, what date is it today?" "November 7th, why- oh." "Her birthday..." Every year Cole had complained about people making a fuss of her on her birthday, she hated it so much that, in order to stop her bitching every year, we just took to putting a single black balloon in the bunker to celebrate. Apparently, someone felt like sneaking in and continuing the tradition. "I don't like this, Hi... It's like she's haunting us..." Shelton gulped, i rolled my eyes and stepped forwards to touch the balloon. "Ben did this, he must've done." I turned back to my friend. "Guess he's not going to want to meet up today then," "What do we do? Do we take it down? Tory will ask about it," i felt my mood darken at the mention of her name, and shook my head. "We leave it here, it's in her memory, and i'm gonna honour that." Fucking bitch. I think i could establish now that i strongly disliked Victoria Brennan. They may have had the same father, but she was no relation to my best friend. Weak, a coward. She had no backbone to speak of, and let those popular idiots push her around without so much as a fight. She'd immediately come in here and claimed the place, trying to rule over us, but not like Cole did. Tory acted like she was queen. It irritated me to no end, as well as the fact that she endlessly worked to try and get Ben alone. She'd organise study lessons without us, or trips to the cinema, or going out for lunch. Of course Ben told us -he hated her more than i did- and she was always so pissed off when me and Shelton turned up to her would-be dates. I mean, she should really have gotten the picture by now that he *wasn't interested*. Oh and speak of the devil. "Oh hey guys," Tory grinned impishly at us and i fixed a goofy grin in place. Hey, i had to at least pretend to like her! "Well hello there- oof!" The tennis ball collided with the side of my head and went rolling along the floor, i raised an eyebrow at Shelton, who smirked at me and flashed a thumbs up. I nodded in his direction, getting that he was trying to distract me. "Your aim is true, young padawan," i applauded, rubbing my aching jaw. Shelton smirked at me. "What's that?" Tory asked, eyeing the balloon suspiciously. I shrugged. "I was thinking of decorating this shit hole, not feeling it?" "Eh, why not? Could look cool." She grinned at me. "Is Ben not coming?" Feigning only moderate interest. Do. Not. Roll. Eyes. "Nope, he's busy today," "Oh? What's he doing?" "Beats me," that was a lie, i knew exactly what he'd be doing. He'd be visiting her. 


	13. Chapter 13- BEN

I got off the bus at Bolton Avenue, walking down the road and stopping outside number 13. I paused on the pavement, debating on whether this was my best decision ever. My musing was cut off when the door swung open, revealing the very person i was meaning to see. "Ben! What're you doing outside, get in here!" She scolded, i shook my head and jogged up the path, ducking into the warm house behind my friend. Calla Peters spun round and jumped on me, wrapping her arms around my neck in a tight hug. I hugged her back, suddenly overcome by so many emotions. "Come on, douche, you want some hot chocolate?" She ushered me upstairs then disappeared into the kitchen, resurfacing five minutes later with two steaming cups of cocoa. She sat next to me on her bed, handing me a drink before flicking long brown curls over her shoulder, silence fell over us. Then, "i know why you're here." I didn't look up from my mug, watching the marshmallows in my drink melt, and Calla leaned against me. "She'd be 16 today, finally legal!" She laughed, and i snorted softly. "She was looking forward to it, you know. She wanted to show you how much she loved you," "Idiot..." My voice was hoarse from holding in tears, Calla sighed and hugged me again. "Come on, it's ok to cry. You'll hurt yourself again if you hold it all in." Her hand ghosted across my wrist, the bandages still hiding my ruined skin. I felt my hands begin to shake, and quickly put the chocolate on the bedside table for fear of spilling it. "Oh god, i miss her so much..." "I know you do, honey, you're only human! Come on, i'm here ok? You can talk to me," "I'm so fucking fed up of having to pretend that everything's alright! And my dad keeps hovering around me asking if everything's alright all the time, i just want everything to go back to normal..." "I know, me too... Hey, i tell you what, why don't we have a movie day?" She grinned at me. "We can order pizza and watch really stupid films and laugh at them, alright?" I smiled slightly and nodded, quickly downing the now lukewarm chocolate and standing up. Calla held out a hand, blue eyes soft, and smiled brightly at me. I attempted to grin back, taking her hand and allowing her to lead me away from my worries. If only for a little while. 


	14. Chapter 14- KIT

As soon as i got home i knew i wasn't alone. I figured it was Tory, back early from her cinema run, so didn't pay much attention to it. "Tor! You home?" I called up the stairs, no answer. "Tory?" I started up the stairs, knocking on her door. I pushed it open, it was empty. "What the hell..." Then i saw it, in the corner of my eye. Cole's door. The door i always kept locked, the room Tory thought was just an old storage cupboard. It was open. I swallowed thickly, walking cautiously towards the room. As i edged closer i heard quiet sobbing drifting through the open door, and fervently hoped that i could retain my scepticism of the paranormal. Cole wasn't haunting me, was she...? I pushed the door open and peered in, momentarily stunned by how unchanged the room was. The walls were still black and covered in countless band and anime posters, there was still a mess of makeup wipes on the floor that she refused to pick up. But there was something else on the floor, something out of place in the untouched room. Ben, sobbing into his hands. I sighed and shut the door behind me, walking over and kneeling infront of the hysterical boy. I registered the rope circled around his neck, the snapped wooden beam behind him that had come from the ceiling. "Oh, Ben..." With ginger movements, i carefully loosened the noose and slid it over his head, laying it on the floor and wrapping my arms around him. "Why?" "I want to go with her." He muttered, he'd stopped sobbing, but i could still see the tears lingering in his eyes as he leaned away from me slightly. "I can't stand being here any more, Kit. I'm sorry for breaking in... I just came to think," "And hang yourself," i added, my voice soft. Ben shrugged. "I didn't mean to do that, i wasn't thinking. Everything just came crashing down on me..." He rubbed his face, glaring at the ceiling. "Shit, i'm such a mess." "Are you still taking your anti-depressants?" I asked cautiously, Ben glanced at me then shrugged again. "Yeah, i have to go back to my specialist next week to be reassessed..." "You gonna tell him about this? He needs to know, Ben," "I know, i know, i will... I want to stop feeling like this, but i can't..." I rubbed his back, not knowing what to say to make everything better. Ben sighed after a minute, rubbing his face and smiling at me. "Don't tell my dad about this, yeah? I don't need him worrying about me any more than he already does," "I guess, but this doesn't happen again, you hear? You're stronger than this." He nodded, i stood up and helped him to his feet. He hugged me tightly. "Thanks, Kit..." "You're always welcome, buddy, now get gone before Tory comes asking what's happened," we walked out into the hall and i relocked the door, following the teen downstairs into the hall. "See you!" I waved him off and closed the door, leaning against it and closing my eyes. 'Cole, we need you...' 


	15. Chapter 15- COLE

Pain. Searing, blinding pain. It felt like my insides were being torn apart and rearranged in a different order while having hydrochloric acid injected into them. I wanted to scream, but knew it would get me nowhere. I lunged over the bed, heaving again, and fell back against the ratty pillow panting heavily. The door slammed open and Karsten stormed in, heading for the locked safe in the corner and pulling papers out urgently. I figured he put the safe in here to taunt me, but i didn't press. I was just thankful that i'd been moved from that godawful lab to a room with a bed, tiny bathroom and mini fridge. It was shit, and i still felt like i was sleeping on stones, but it was better than being strapped to a table.

"What... Crawled up your ass... And died...?" I panted, resting my burning forehead on the ice cole bed panel. I felt the professor glare at me.

"Your buddies have stolen the dog." He ground out. "That new girl is a curse!" I raised my head blearily, the action itself was like i had a 30kg weight strapped on my forehead, to raise an eyebrow at my captor.

"New girl?" He turned to smirk coldly at me. Wow, he actually took time out of his busy schedule to taunt me!

"Dr Howard's long lost daughter, looks like you've been replaced already, dear."

"Ah, well. At least they're not hooked up on me, eh?" I winked at him and he bristled, spinning back round and continuing to rifle through his pages. I lay back on my front, closing my eyes and sighing slightly. My mind drifted to Ben, i hoped he was looking after himself. Knew he probably wasn't. "...Karsten?"

"What?" He snapped back, i didn't open my eyes.

"Am i going to die?" Karsten was silent for a long time, then his hand was on my chin, and there was a light shining in my eyes.

"How's the pain?" He asked, his voice softer than i'd heard for weeks. I shrugged.

"It's stopped..." For the first time in about two months i didn't feel the now familiar burn, it was just the dull ache of fatigue taking over.

"Your body has accepted the new DNA, it's stabilised as far as i can tell."

"So..."

"No, miss Howard. You are not going to die from this." I nodded, a relieved smile on my face. Them Karsten frowned. "Your friends, on the other hand..."

"What about them?" I asked, straightening up slightly.

"The dog they stole is still carrying the virus, and it's contagious. They could contract the parvo, but it wouldn't be as concentrated and could become harmful, even fatal."

My eyes widened, and i shook my head.

"You have to do something! You can't let them die, help them!" The professor scowled at me, straightening his tie.

"I don't appreciate being lorded over by you, miss Howard." I matched his glare with my own, my eyes burning. I felt something snap within me, and the world shifted into crystal clear focus. I could see the tiny beads of sweat gathering along his hairline, from across the room. I saw, heard, him gulp.

"Help. Them."

"I'm working on an antidote that should stabilise their DNA, but i need to talk to them." He headed back to the door, a black box in hand, turning slightly in my direction. "I topped up the fridge while you were asleep, that should occupy you for a while," i rolled my eyes, not looking forward to the shit he bought simply because it had a long life. "I'll be back by tomorrow." Then he left. I waited for the familiar sound of the lock clicking, then pushed myself from the bed and stumbled over to the grotty mirror in the bathroom. My hair had grown out at an unnaturally fat pace, falling way down my back and hanging in my face. Piercing, glowing red eyes stared out from my reflection, and i watched them in wonder. They were my eyes. I sighed, dropping my gaze.

"Please, everyone. Be safe..."


	16. Chapter 16- KARSTEN

I pulled up in the deserted carpark of the plaza and got out, clutching the box in my shaking hands like a lifeline. A group of teens stumbles passed, drunk beyond comprehension, they didn't spare me a glance. Everything fell silent for three long, agonising minutes, then a sleek silver sports car pulled up beside me. Hollis Claybourne stepped from the car, sunglasses fixed in place, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. He stared at me, then drew £3000 from his pocket. Slapped it into my hand.

"I trust you brought it?" He drawled, i nodded and opened the box.

"As you requested,"

"And it's stable?"

"Yes. The girl survived the change and is reacting well to the alterations." Claybourne nodded, snatched the box from my hands. "Um, may i ask what you want this for? It isn't to be taken lightly-"

"That is my business and my business alone." He got up in my face, i could smell the smoke on his breath and almost gagged. "You hear me? You're just the little lab rat, scurry away now." He turned and climbed back behind the wheel of his car, speeding off with such power that it left a mark on the tarmac. I swallowed thickly, adjusting my collar and shaking my head before sliding back into my own car.

I'd better get paid extra for this.


	17. Chapter 17- SHELTON

"You're insane." I hissed, glancing fervently at the huge house Tory wanted to break into. "Like, seriously insane."

"That's the freaking Claybourne Manor, Tory!" Hi joined in, face red with the effort if not running away. Hell, i'd only be a step behind him. "Do you know what Chance would do if he found you in there?! You'd be hung, drawn and quartered for sure!"

"Will both of you calm down? We need answers, and we're only going to get them here. Now get going and scout around, i'll meet you at the marina in half an hour," i raised an eyebrow at the determination set into Tory's face, then glanced at Hi. He shrugged, and we stood up.

"Half an hour." Hi repeated, grabbing my arm and towing me away. "My god, she is so fucking stupid!" He growled when we got out of earshot. I shrugged, smirking despite the situation.

"Hiram, what would your mother say about your potty mouth?" Then my face darkened. "But you're right, she is stupid... And reckless, she's using this-" i tapped my temple, an uneasy expression on my face. "-way too freely. Hell, we don't even know what's happened to us, we could be dying a little more every time we flare," Hi sighed, stopping and leaning against a wall with closed eyes.

"Cole would know what to do," i fell next to him, stuffing my hands in my pockets and dropping my head back so i was watching the sky.

"Cole always knew what to do," i laughed. "Do you remember that time in year seven, first day, we got cornered by those year elevens? Me and you shit ourselves."

"Yeah, and Cole talked our way out of it!" Hi giggled. "'That'll really make you seem hard when you tell your buddies that you beat up two underdeveloped eleven year old boys and a little girl.' She was a bloody genius!" We both laughed at the memory, then fell into companionable silence. Then i shoved Hi's shoulder.

"Come on, doofus, lets go do that scouting,"


	18. Chapter 18- CHANCE

A/N: ok, from here on in the story's going to follow the basic storyline of the books, but i am going to be changing what happens slightly to fit with where i want to go with this thing, so please don't bitch at me if you don't agree with what i write! Arigatou! Please review :3

ja ne!

-ONE WEEK LATER-

I tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall into any sort of sleep. I dozed for minutes at a time, then woke with a start from awful nightmares. It struck me in the face: my father was a murderer. It shouldn't have been surprising really, he had come so close to killing me many times. Still, he'd taken someone's life, for what? Money? My mind drifted back to what i'd told Tory. No, i wasn't willing to lose my inheritance because of something that bastard did, but nor was i willing to kill anyone for it. It was just money, it didn't control my actions. I was dragged from my musings by a very faint sound, coming from downstairs. The wine cellar. Rubbing my eyes, i sat up and grabbed the gun from under my bed, being careful not to wake the sleeping Hannah as i slipped from the room. Cool air brushed my bare legs as i made my way downstairs, clutching the gun to my chest. I inched down the stairs, pushing ope the door and pointing the gun blindly. Then my gaze settled on Tory, and i felt rage fire through my veins.

"You're so stupid, why come back?" I asked, pointing the gun at her face. Her friends -Cole's friends- gathered behind her, Ben caught my eye and scowled, turning away.

"Chance-" the redhead started, i shook my head.

"Over there. Now." They obeyed, walking over and standing by the wall. "Phones on the floor." Again, they did as instructed. I pushed the phones away with my foot. Then i sighed. "God, i'm not going to shoot you. I would never kill anyone," my gun lowered and i leaned against the wall. "That would make me as bad as him. But why can't you just leave it alone? It happened so damn long ago,"

"Your father's a murderer, Chance. He needs to go to jail." Tory said, green eyes hard. Ben stepped forwards slightly, looking directly at me. For once, he didn't look like he wanted to kill me, he looked... Sad?

"Don't you want to see him behind bars for what he's done?" He kept my gaze, his expression fierce. "For everything he's done?" I saw it, then. I knew that he remembered, my hand unconsciously drifted up to my neck. The other's looked between us in confusion, before i nodded slowly.

"... Fine. Take the stuff and leave already, if my father catches you you'll all join Heaton-"

"Chance?" I jumped at the sound of my girlfriend's voice at the top of the stairs, and looked up to see her descending towards me.

"Hannah, go back to bed." I said, hiding the gun behind my back. She stopped next to me and blinked at the four intruders.

"What are they doing here? What's going on?" I opened my mouth to tell her that it was nothing and she shouldn't worry about it, when Tory cut me off.

"Help us, Hannah! He has a gun!" She cried, my gaze whipped round to her and i scowled.

"You little-"

"What does she mean 'gun'? Sweetie do you have a gun?!" I shook my head instantly, though she obviously didn't believe me. She held out a hand expectantly. "Hand it over, Chance. Now." I groaned like a five year old, begrudgingly handing the gun over to my girlfriend. She looked at it for a moment, seemingly mesmerised, before clicking the safety off and pointing it at Tory. I blinked.

"Hannah, what are you doing? Put that away! You could hurt someone!" She smirked, but it wasn't the usual sweet smile. It was a cruel grimace.

"But honey, that's what these things are for! Hurting people. Now go fetch two shovels, dear, we have some bodies to bury." I stared at her, mouth slightly agape. She frowned in my direction. "Chance, i won't ask you again."

"You're crazy! You can't kill people, you psycho!" I backed away from her, grabbing one of the phone's from the pile on the floor and dialling 999.

I never saw her pull the trigger.


End file.
